


Fever

by ColiOli



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Fevers, Fluff, Illness, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-15
Updated: 2017-09-15
Packaged: 2018-12-30 01:14:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12097494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ColiOli/pseuds/ColiOli
Summary: Jesus shows up to Alexandria with a fever. Daryl draws him a bath.(The kind of fic where you hope for smut but its just some fluffy stuff)





	Fever

Daryl pulled back the sheer curtain to peer down to the street below. On the paved landing was the leader of the Alexandrians communicating with the darkly cladded scout from Hilltop. The full moon cast tall shadows from each of the figures that danced around the pavement following the movements of their originators.

He observes his leader communicating with his covert lover. Michonne appears from inside the house and chooses to stand at Rick’s back. She listens to the two and occasionally interjects words of her own. At last her and Rick exchange a long look before dismissing the Hilltop resident and heading away from the house.

Daryl releases the curtain when Jesus looks up to his window, pausing with his wide eyes locked on the man peering from above. Within seconds Daryl can hear the heavy footsteps of Jesus’s boots heading up the stairs outside his door in the hallway.

When Daryl turns around, he finds Jesus leaning against the doorway between his room and the hall. Daryl isn’t the most observant of people when it comes to taking in another’s appearance but even Jesus’s presence is obvious and slightly alarming.

“Rick told me to let you know he was leaving right away and asked if you’d keep Carl in line.”

Daryl reaches out to the younger man and places a hand over the side of his head. “Hey, you alrigh’?” Jesus shudders but doesn’t hesitate to lean into the touch. “Yer burnin’ up.”

Jesus frowns and then lifts his head from the touch. “I’m okay. I spotted another out-post and came straight here to let Rick now. But I need to get back to Hilltop.”

“You ain’ need to be back. It’s dark and yer not well.”

Jesus smirks. “I’m not going to win this one, am I?”

Daryl shakes his head and invites Jesus to lay on the makeshift bed made of blankets on the floor. Ever since the Saviors burned their mattresses Daryl had grown used to the feel of a hard floor under his bones again. Yet the comfort of Alexandra was still better than sleeping on the floor of some random house while they were on the road.

Jesus grimaces as he lays down. It’s obvious the younger man tries not to show his agony when he spreads out. Daryl sneaks up behind him and extends and arm over the younger man and nuzzles his head into the crook of his shoulder. With his face up close he can feel Jesus’s shivering body against his own, though his skin is radiating heat.

“I really _don’t_ feel well,” Jesus admits after a moment of silence. He pushes himself back against the warmth of Daryl’s body.  “Feel like hell.” He grabs for a thick blanket and starts to pull it over himself.

“Yer going to shake yourself to death with that shiverin’, but you need to cool down.” Daryl pushes the blanket away.

“Daryl, please. My body hurts right now.”

“Quit complainin’ and let me take care of you.” Daryl pulls himself from Jesus and lifts himself from the ground. “Be back.”

When Daryl returns some short time later, he finds Jesus curled up in a ball wrapped up in a tight cocoon with the blanket Daryl had refused him earlier.

“Stubborn hippie,” Daryl mutters as he rouses the younger man by gently nudging him. He helps Jesus to a stand and directs him to the bathroom in the hallway. Daryl closes the door behind them and sets on the back of the toilet a folded towel and change of clothes.

“Undress while I start the water.”

Jesus slowly follows the command as the sound of water pouring into the empty tub fills the small room. His movements are slow as each shift from his body sends a sharp pain through each of his joints. Daryl helps Paul pull off his shirt and discard his pants. When the younger man is fully naked he begins to shiver.

Daryl directs the sickly-pallor man over to the tub and helps him step in. The water is surprisingly much warmer than Jesus had anticipated. He knew Eugene had set up Alexandria with solar panels connected to the water heaters some time ago, but he hadn’t been expecting the water to feel nearly so good. He had nearly forgotten just how warm water could feel against his naked skin.

“I brought ya some medicine. Tylenol and stuff.”

“No. Save it for when it’s needed.”

“Yer’ hurtin’. This’ll bring that fever down.” Jesus doesn’t argue any further and allows Daryl to feed him the two small pills with a drink of water from a bottle.

Jesus carefully leans back and allows the water to ease his aching joints and warm his body. Daryl rolls up the sleeves to his shirt and then kneels next to the tub. He adds some pink soap from a glass bottle and then stirs the water with his hand. Grabbing for a cloth, he douses it in the tub then wrings out the excess before placing it on Jesus’s forehead.

The water fills to near the top of the tub before Daryl shuts off the flow.

“Thank you,” Paul mutters after some time.

Daryl shrugs. “Need ta’ get yer fever broke. This is what Merle would do for me when I was sick as a kid.”

It’s one of the most complete sentences that Jesus had ever heard the hunter mutter. Perhaps its Daryl’s mood, or for the fact that for once it’s Jesus who needs the help from him. Whatever the reason, Jesus doesn’t want him to stop talking. And rarely would Daryl be a man for words when he mentioned Merle.

“Your brother?”

“He was older than me by 11 years. My parents weren’t ain’t any help when I was sick. Didn’t care much but about their booze. Merle would steal medicine from the store and bring it back to me. He’d make me a bath but it ain’t ever have all this fancy shit like special soap and stuff.”

Jesus smirks. “I never had any of that either growing up in a group home. This is the first time I’ve been treated to such luxury by someone else.” He pauses, his voice hardly a whisper when he adds, “This means a lot to me.”

It’s the brittleness and near naked comment of Daryl’s that nearly brings a smile to Paul’s flushed face. “So do you, Paul. Just get better, alrigh’?”

Daryl leans towards the tub, not caring if his sleeved arms touch the water. Leaning in, he pulls Jesus against his chest and into a soft embrace.

 

 

 

 

 

 


End file.
